Italian Photography Festival 2026: "Rites and Visions"

Dates: 12 June – 6 September 2026. Location: Casentino, with the main exhibition at CIFA - Italian Centre for Author Photography, Bibbiena.

Overview

The 2026 edition examines contemporary spirituality and the ways the sacred permeates everyday life: collective rites and private gestures, religious practices and pagan survivals, memory, the body and the search for meaning. Under the theme "Rites and Visions. Between spiritual and material", the Festival continues its mission to showcase Italian photographic heritage and foster dialogue between established artists and emerging talents.

Key facts

• Main exhibition: "Corpo a Corpo. Visions compared on the sacred" (CIFA, Bibbiena).
• Period: 12/06/2026 – 06/09/2026.
• Artistic direction: Denis Curti and Roberto Rossi.
• Format: a distributed program across Bibbiena, Poppi and Pratovecchio Stia; talks, portfolio reviews, masterclasses and projects for young authors.
• Participants: 21 authors featured in the central exhibition, arranged into 10 thematic dialogues.

The central exhibition: "Corpo a Corpo. Visions compared on the sacred"

The curatorial project turns the theme into a layered exhibition path that pits languages, generations and perspectives against each other to probe how to represent what often eludes visual capture. The show is structured in ten thematic encounters addressing topics such as aspiration to the divine, the shifting border between sacred and profane, the body as place of revelation, atonement, meditative landscape, magic, light and spiritual journeys.

Featured authors range from Ferdinando Scianna and Massimo Sestini to Bruno Cattani, Massimo Siragusa, Fabrizio Spucches, Valentino Giannini, Tarin, Fabiana Zanola, Attilio Solzi, Kicca Tommasi, Vito Sforza, Pepi Merisio, Silvia Camporesi, Antonio Biasiucci, Teresa Bucca, Giovanni Chiaramonte, Alessia Rollo, Tiziano Terzani, Amalia Violi, Daniele Bondì and Eleonora Paciullo.

Program and activities

• Collateral exhibitions and thematic proposals in Bibbiena, Poppi and Pratovecchio Stia.
• Talks and meetings with artists and curators to delve into the Festival's themes.
• Portfolio reviews, masterclasses and routes dedicated to young authors.
• Production projects and initiatives developed in dialogue with the Casentino territory.

Practical information

The central exhibition takes place at CIFA - Italian Centre for Author Photography in Bibbiena, with additional venues throughout the Casentino. For up-to-date opening times, ticketing and the full program consult the Festival's official channels and the venues involved.

Why visit

This edition provides a chance to see how contemporary Italian photography addresses profound questions about the sacred and spirituality, linking collective memory, local practices and diverse visual languages. The program is aimed at general audiences as well as professionals and photography students.